Post subject: We're scared and don't know what to do next! Please help..

Posted: Fri Mar 05, 2010 1:05 am

Joined: Thu Mar 04, 2010 5:18 pmPosts: 4

I posted earlier about my daughter responding to a mystery shopper ad on craigslist and receiving two money orders for $930 each to be cashed and then rewired to someone else. Once she showed me her emails with the alleged company, and the two money orders she received, I was fairly sure this was a scam - and you guys confirmed it.

However, we are unsure of how to proceed next. We don't want to keep these money orders. But what if we tear them up and they are somehow legitimate? Wouldn't my daughter be liable? Also, I've read some horrible scenarios about banks and MoneyGram having you arrested if you just call and notify them that you have money orders that might be bogus in your possession - something about intent to defraud - kind of an arrest first and answer questions later kind of thing. So what do we do ignore these money orders? Call the police? I certainly don't want to take the chance of my daughter being arrested!Do I contact the FBI? Some fraud division - or what?

The only contact information my daughter got from the allegeded Mystery Shopping company is a contacts name and his email address - no physical address or phone number. The money orders came in an express mail envelope from a residence in California and the instructions were to MoneyGram, all but my daughter's fee to a completely different person in Ohio. Obviously, that is not going to happen.

I did email my daughter's contact asking for the name of the company, physical address and telephone number stating that I can't allow her to work for a firm without that basic information. I did not confirm whether or not she received the money orders or not. Within one half hour of sending the email to the suspected scammer, our house phone rang at 11:53 pm anda man identifying himself as Mr. Somers (the email correspondent) demanded to speak to my daughter. I told him she was already asleep and asked who he was with...he continued to ask to speak to her and would only identify himself as Mr. Somers but not who he was with. He eventually hung up. When my daughter checked her cell phone, she had 3 calls from the same number he used to call our house phone, but no messages. I told her to block the number from her phone - and we have just finished putting fraud alerts on all 3 credit reporting bureaus in case any information she unwittingly supplied be used for identity theft.

What else do I need to do to help protect her? As said before, we want no part of these money orders - and my gut instinct to call the authorities and report this whole scenario, but not if there is any chance that my daughter can get in any trouble. She already feels very stupid about this and is now really afraid. And it was scarey having this man call at almost midnight, obviously no real employer would do that! Please help...what can we - and what should we do about all of this?

Let me assure you that there is NO WAY that the money orders are real . . . I would bet my life on it.

Destroy them . . . run them through the shredder. I would also block the scammer's email address. If they continue to give you a hard time, tell them that you turned everything over to the FBI . . . that usually makes them go away.

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